te was not violently attached to cards.
Could he not say something? Could he not lift up his voice, if only
for a moment, and speak forth as he so loved to do, as was his wont
in the meetings of the saints, his brethren?

He looked at Miss Todd, and he raised his eyes, and he raised his
hands, but the courage was not in him to speak. There was about Miss
Todd as she stood, or as she sat, a firmness which showed itself even
in her rotundity, a vigour in the very rubicundity of her cheek which
was apt to quell the spirit of those who would fain have interfered
with her. So Mr. O'Callaghan, having raised his eyes considerably,
and having raised his hands a little, said nothing.

"I fear you do not approve of cards?" said Miss Todd.

"Approve! oh no, how can I approve of them, Miss Todd?"

"Well, I do with all my heart. What are old women like us to do? We
haven't eyes to read at night, even if we had minds fit for it. We
can't always be saying our prayers. We have nothing to talk about
except scandal. It's better than drinking; and we should come to that
if we hadn't cards."

"Oh, Miss Todd!"

"You see you have your excitement in preaching, Mr. O'Callaghan.
These card-tables are our pulpits; we have got none other. We haven't
children, and we haven't husbands. That is, the most of us. And we
should be in a lunatic asylum in six weeks if you took away our
cards. Now, will you tell me, Mr. O'Callaghan, what would you expect
Miss Ruff to do if you persuaded her to give up whist?"

"She has the poor with her always, Miss Todd."

"Yes, she has; the woman that goes about with a clean apron and four
borrowed children; and the dumb man with a bit of chalk and no legs,
and the very red nose. She has these, to be sure, and a lot more.
But suppose she looks after them all the day, she can't be looking
after them all the night too. The mind must be unbent sometimes, Mr.
O'Callaghan."

"But to play for money, Miss Todd! Is not that gambling?"

"Well, I don't know. I can't say what gambling is. But do you sit
down and play for love, Mr. O'Callaghan, and see how soon you'll go
to sleep. Come, shall we try? I can have a little private bet, just
to keep myself awake, with Sir Lionel, here."

But Mr. O'Callaghan declined the experiment. So he had another cup of
tea and another muffin, and then went his way; regretting sorely in
his heart that he could not get up into a high pulpit and preach at
them all. However, he consoled h